Spy chief defends Obama administration
In a statement, Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr.
weighs in on the deadly assault on the U.S. mission in Libya.
(
by Greg Miller
, The Washington Post)

China’s currency rising against the dollar
The value of China’s yuan closed Friday near a record high against the
dollar, approaching what some analysts consider a fair market price and
potentially easing concerns that the country’s currency policy is
damaging the U.S. economy.
(
by Howard Schneider
, The Washington Post)

Romney attacked on Chinese investments
The Obama campaign says it is inappropriate for a presidential nominee to be investing so much money there.
(
by Philip Rucker and Jia Lynn Yang
, The Washington Post)

BofA to Pay $2.43 Billion to End Shareholder Suit Over Merrill
Bank of America Corp. agreed to a $2.43 billion settlement with
investors who suffered losses during its acquisition of Merrill Lynch
& Co., resolving one of the biggest legal battles to stem from the
takeover.
(
by Zachary Tracer and Bradley Keoun
Bloomberg News
, Bloomberg)

Spy chief defends Obama administration
In a statement, Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr.
weighs in on the deadly assault on the U.S. mission in Libya.
(
by Greg Miller
, The Washington Post)

Bo Xilai ousted from Communist Party
Once-powerful official, accused of multiple crimes, purged from ranks in advance of leadership transition.
(
by William Wan
, The Washington Post)

May 02, 2012

The Song: Few rappers, if any, can hold a candle to the influence and staying power of Kool Keith. The veteran emcee's career spans over two decades, beginning with the release of Ultramagnetic MCs' Critical Beatdown in 1988, and includes a string of heralded solo releases. With each of those projects the Bronx-born rapper has solidified himself as one of the most intriguing characters in music and now, his latest album, Love & Danger, will be released on June 5th via Junkadelic Music. Today, Kool Keith is excited to release the album's latest single, "Extra Thoughts," featuring The I.M.O. "Extra Thoughts," produced by DJ Junkaz Lou, is built over a minimalist kick-and-snare production, with accents of psychedelic blips, beeps, and chimes that keep things interesting. It's a perfect fit for Kool Keith, who delivers a laid-back, stream-of-consciousness flow on a topic that few others than Kool Keith would or could attempt. "This song is about the inspiration of thoughts," says Kool Keith, in a purposefully vague tone. "Thoughts come like a million basketballs dropping out of the sky, but its the extra thoughts that count."

In addition to the new single, Kool Keith recently sat down with VICE for an interview with the outlet's newly launched YouTube series, Noisey Rap Show. The show is hosted by Kool A.D. of Das Racist, who caught up with Kool Keith at the Sweetwater Tavern in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to discuss Keith's pioneering of horrorcore and pornocore, the dirtiest track Keith ever wrote, and so much more.

The Song: Late last month, Illmaculate released his latest album, Skrill Talk. On June 2nd, the Portland, Oregon, rapper will celebrate the album's release with a show at Branx, but before then, Illmaculate is joining his Sandpeople crew for a string of European tour dates. Today, to kick off the tour announcement, Illmaculate is releasing the latest single from Skrill Talk, "One More Time," featuring Sandpeople.

The song, produced by Soleternity, is Illmaculate's response to the pressures of an industry driven by release dates and timetables; he wants to do things his way - and with his crew by his side. "My crew, Sandpeople, definitely had to be on the album," remarks Illmaculate, noting that the song's feel is representative of the Sandpeople process for making music. "This song really has its own vibe within the scope of the album, but it works," he says, "just like everyone in the crew had their own approach to the song, while still remaining cohesive."

Later this month, Illmaculate will be hitting the road with the rest of his Sandpeople crew, as they head overseas for a string of European dates. The tour kicks off May 12th in Sweden and makes stops in Germany, Amsterdam, London, and more, before winding down on May 26th in Oslo, Norway. A full list of dates can be found below.

In other news, on June 9th, Illmaculate, who, since 2004, has proven himself as one of the most accomplished battle rappers in the world, will travel to Los Angeles to take part in the KOTD Vendetta competition. In what will be the biggest battle of his career, Illmaculate will be matching up against Arsonal, while Canibus and Dizaster will also be battling at the event. For more info: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibPhqv1krdA

February 11, 2012

Whitney Houston, the multimillion-selling singer who emerged in the 1980s as one of her generation’s greatest R & B voices, only to deteriorate through years of cocaine use and an abusive marriage, died on Saturday in Beverly Hills, Calif. She was 48.

Her death came as the music industry descended on Los Angeles for the annual celebration of the Grammy Awards, and Ms. Houston was — for all her difficulties over the years — one of its queens. She was staying at the Beverly Hilton hotel on Saturday to attend a pre-Grammy party being hosted by Clive Davis, the founder of Arista Records, who had been her pop mentor.

Ms. Houston was found in her room at 3:55 p.m., and paramedics spent close to 20 minutes trying to revive her, the authorities said. There was no immediate word on the cause of her death, but the authorities said there were no signs of foul play.

From the start of her career more than two decades ago, Ms. Houston had the talent, looks and pedigree of a pop superstar. She was the daughter of Cissy Houston, a gospel and pop singer who had backed up Aretha Franklin, and the cousin of Dionne Warwick. (Ms. Franklin is Ms. Houston’s godmother.)

Ms. Houston’s range spanned three octaves, and her voice was plush, vibrant and often spectacular. She could pour on the exuberant flourishes of gospel or peal a simple pop chorus; she could sing sweetly or unleash a sultry rasp.

But by the mid-1990s, even as she was moving into acting with films like “The Bodyguard” and “The Preacher’s Wife,” she became what she described, in a 2009 interview with Oprah Winfrey, as a “heavy” user of marijuana and cocaine. By the 2000s she was struggling; her voice grew smaller, scratchier and less secure, and her performances grew erratic.

All of Ms. Houston’s studio albums were million-sellers, and two have sold more than 10 million copies in the United States alone: her 1985 debut album and the 1992 soundtrack to “The Bodyguard,” which includes “I Will Always Love You.”

But her marriage to the singer Bobby Brown — which was, at one point, documented in a Bravo reality television series, “Being Bobby Brown” — grew miserable, and in the 2000s, her singles slipped from the top 10. Ms. Houston became a tabloid subject: the National Enquirer ran a photo of her bathroom showing drug paraphernalia. And each new album — “Just Whitney” in 2002 and “I Look to You” in 2009 — became a comeback.

At Central Park in 2009, singing for “Good Morning America,” her voice was frayed, and on the world tour that followed the release of the album “I Look to You” that year, she was often shaky. Whitney Houston was born on Aug. 9, 1963, in Newark. She sang in church, and as a teenager in the 1970s and early 1980s, she worked as a backup studio singer and featured vocalist with acts including Chaka Khan, the Neville Brothers and Bill Laswell’s Material.

Mr. Davis signed her after hearing her perform in a New York City nightclub, and spent two years supervising production of the album “Whitney Houston,” which was released in 1985. It placed her remarkable voice in polished, catchy songs that straddled pop and R & B, and it included three No. 1 singles: “Saving All My Love for You,” “How Will I Know” and “The Greatest Love of All.”

Because Ms. Houston had been credited on previous recordings, including a 1984 duet with Teddy Pendergrass, she was ruled ineligible for the best new artist category of the Grammy Awards; the eligibility criteria have since been changed. But with “Saving All My Love for You,” she won her first Grammy award, for best female pop vocal performance, an award she would win twice more.

Her popularity soared for the next decade. Her second album, “Whitney,” in 1987, became the first album by a woman to enter the Billboard charts at No. 1, and it included four No. 1 singles. She shifted her pop slightly toward R & B on her third album, “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight,” in 1990, which had three more No. 1 singles.

For much of the 1990s, she turned to acting, bolstered by her music. She played a pop diva in “The Bodyguard,” and its soundtrack album — including the hits “I Will Always Love You,” “I’m Every Woman,” “I Have Nothing” and “Run to You” — went on to sell 17 million copies in the United States. It won the Grammy for album of the year, and “I Will Always Love You” won record of the year (for a single). After making the films “Waiting To Exhale” in 1995 and “The Preacher’s Wife” in 1996 — which gave her the occasion to make a gospel album — Ms. Houston resumed her pop career with “My Love Is Your Love” in 1998.

Ms. Houston married Mr. Brown in 1992, and in 1993 they had a daughter, Bobbi Kristina, who survives her. Ms. Houston’s 2009 interview with Ms. Winfrey portrayed it as a passionate and then turbulent marriage, marred by drug use and by his professional jealousy, psychological abuse and physical confrontations. They divorced in 2007.

Her albums in the 2000s advanced a new persona for Ms. Houston. “Just Whitney,” in 2002, was defensive and scrappy, lashing out at the media and insisting on her loyalty to her man. Her most recent studio album, “I Look to You,” appeared in 2009, and it, too, reached No. 1. The album included a hard-headed breakup song, “Salute,” and a hymnlike anthem, “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength.” Ms. Houston sang, “I crashed down and I tumbled, but I did not crumble/I got through all the pain,” in a voice that showed scars. CONTINUE READING

September 2012

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